Basic tips for computing

Use strong words
A "strong" password mixes numbers and letters, and not in alphabetical or numerical sequence ("abcd1234" is not strong). Mix the case and throw in punctuation marks. Use an entire phrase if space allows; longer is better. PassPub.com randomly generates strong passwords you can use.

Don't use weak words
Never use a word that you can find in the dictionary or that is a proper name. Pets, kids, and spouses make bad passwords. Don't use the date you changed passwords ("jan23"). By all that's digital, don't use "password" as your password.

Change it
Alter your passwords regularly to stay one step ahead of those who might want to use them.

Be inconsistent
Don't use the same password on every computer you use or every site you surf. All it takes is one site to become compromised, and then someone will have access to all your accounts.

Create a master password
For the memory challenged, create a single, strong password you can recall, then adjust it based on the name of the site or service. For MySpace, for example, "Blg1225" becomes "MyspBlg1225." Or let technology handle it: A number of Firefox add-ons will combine your master password with the name of a site to create a new password for each site.

Protect Firefox
The Firefox browser offers the option of a master password that you must enter before you can access any stored site passwords. It requires entering two passwords each time. The Mac OS comes with a feature called Keychain that holds passwords for Web sites, appli-cations, and more. You can find it in the Utilities folder.

Don't AutoComplete passwords
Browsers will not only store your passwords but also fill them in for you. This is a bad idea on a shared or office-based PC. In Firefox, use the master password instead. In IE, go to Internet Options, click the Content tab, and go to AutoComplete settings to disable.

Basic Tips

Install antivirus (AV)
Keep it up to date, run a regular scan, and let it check your incoming messages. Without this, your PC is virtually guaranteed to be infected.

Update antispyware
This may be bundled with your AV; keep it up to date and scan occasionally. It's a good idea to install a couple of antispyware apps, such as Windows Defender (it comes with Vista) and Spy Sweeper.

Use a bidirectional firewall
Prevent unwanted inbound and outbound traffic on your PC. Two-way firewalls come standard withMac OS and Windows Vista. Users of older Windows versions should get a third-party firewall such as CheckPoint's Zone alarm.

Don't mix multiple firewalls or antivirus software
It might seem like twice the protection to have two firewalls, but it's likely to double the headaches. Same with dual AV. (Antispyware is another story.)

Allow auto updates
Let Windows and Mac OS update when they want to, since Microsoft and Apple are constantly patching any security holes they find.

Don't accept EXEs
Downloading executable files (ending in .exe, .com, .bat, and .scr) is hard to avoid, but be wary of those e-mailed to you. That goes for .doc and .xls files as well; they can carry macro-based viruses.

Route traffic
If you have broadband service but don't have a router, get one. Wired or wireless, they're cheap.

Activate the hardware firewall
Your router should support NAT (network address translation) so Internet users scanning for open ports to exploit can't see your computers. It should also support SPI (stateful packet inspection) to distinguish legitimate network traffic from bad. Don't turn these features off.

Firewall Protection

The firewall is critical. A personal firewall's first task is to put all of your computer's ports in stealth mode, making it completely invisible from the Internet. Of course, it should allow necessary communication among the computers within your local network. This isn't tough; the built-in Windows Firewall can do it. But not all suites pass this simple test.

The firewall should also control outbound communication, preventing Internet access by unauthorized programs. The old-fashioned way to accomplish this was simple: When a given program tried to access the Internet for the first time, the firewall would ask the user whether or not to allow it. The problem is that most users aren't qualified to answer that question. Some products try to solve this problem by predefining access for hundreds (or thousands) of known good programs. That cuts down on the confirmation pop-ups, but doesn't eliminate them. Others, such as F-Secure Securitynet 2008 and Kaspersky Internet Security 7.0, "solve" the problem by running with this feature turned off by default—a poor choice.

The smartest firewalls use a three-part strategy. They automatically allow access for known good programs and delete known bad programs. When a program doesn't fit either category, the firewall keeps an eye on its behavior and allows access as long as the program doesn't try anything sneaky. Clearly this takes a lot more programmed-in intelligence than the simple ask-the-user plan, but it's definitely better for the user.Norton Internet Security 2008 and Panda Internet Security 2008 are two good examples of this approach in action.

There's always the possibility that malicious software will attack your firewall directly to disable its protection. Firewalls (and security programs in general) should resist if malware tries to kill their processes, turn off their services, or otherwise disable the protection they offer.

Your firewall may or may not protect directly against Web-based attacks that exploit vulnerabilities in the operating system or browser. Some, like NIS 2008, actively block exploits and even identify them by name. But most rely on their malware-protection abilities to prevent the exploit from doing harm, even if it does manage to plant a malicious file on your computer.

The versatile 22-inch HDTV/monitor from ViewSonic

Designed for use in tight spaces, theViewSonic N2201w is ideal for dorm room or studio apartment living, or if you simply want to add a TV to your already-cramped home office. This versatile 22-inch HDTV/monitor hybrid sports a variety of entertainment features, including a built-in DVD player and a digital TV tuner, but its dark grayscale performance is lacking.

The 1,680-by-1,050 resolution panel, housed in a black cabinet with a shiny black bezel, is perched atop a wide oval base, which gives it a good measure of stability. Unfortunately, the stand is a tilt-only model that lets you angle the panel forward but not backward beyond the 90-degree point, and it doesn't support height or swivel adjustments. If you do decide to tilt the screen, make sure you use both hands, as the mechanism is very stiff.

The 3-watt speakers embedded in the lower bezel are a cut above the usual underpowered speakers found on displays. They are loud and deliver a full range of high and midrange tones. You won't get booming bass from these speakers, but they do produce more bottom than most.

Around back are a slew of connectivity ports, including a standard VGA analog port, an HDMI port, component video and audio outputs, S-Video and composite video inputs, 2-channel audio inputs, a digital audio output, and a coaxial TV antenna/cable input. There's also a DVD video output for playing videos on an external screen. Considering the lack of a DVI port, a second HDMI port would have been nice, but this is still a good mix of ports for a 22-inch monitor. The N2201w comes with a VGA cable, but you're on your own when it comes to HDMI, S-Video, and component cables.

A slot-loading DVD player with five control buttons, clearly labeled with white lettering, is integrated into the left-hand side of the cabinet. Below it is a conveniently positioned headphone jack. The same white lettering is used to identify the seven buttons (including the power switch) on the right-hand side of the display, one of which is a Menu button that takes you into the on-screen display (OSD) system. The other buttons are used to change TV channels, select an input source, and raise or lower the volume. They can also be used to toggle through and select menu choices while navigating the OSD, but it's much easier to use the included full-function remote, which features the usual array of TV and DVD player controls as well as closed captioning, favorite channels, MTS/SAP, and electronic program guide buttons.

While in PC mode, you can adjust contrast, brightness, and sharpness, and toggle between four Picture modes: Standard, Dynamic, Soft, and Personal (user-defined). I'd recommend sticking with the Standard setting, as Soft was very dark and Dynamic a bit too bright. Color temperature choices include Cool, Warm, and Normal, and you can adjust horizontal and vertical positioning and clock and phase levels. The same settings are available in TV mode, where you can select a TV signal source, scan for available channels, enable closed captioning, and set parental controls as well.

I was generally impressed with the L2201w's performance as a PC monitor. It did a very good job of reproducing the lightest shades of gray on my DisplayMate 64-Step Grayscale test. Colors were bold and uniform at the high end of the scale. The panel had a difficult time displaying the darkest shades of gray, however, making the deepest reds and blues darker than they should be. There also was noticeable backlight bleeding along the bottom edge and left-hand side of the panel. Still, color representation was generally good, and text was crisp and well defined at 6 points. Smaller fonts set to 5.3 points were slightly fuzzy but still legible.

The integrated ATSC/NTAC/QAM tuner's auto-scan had no trouble finding all of my available cable channels, and they all came in cleanly. Channel changing via the remote was a tad slow, but not unbearably so, and the 5-millisecond (black-to-white) pixel-response rate provided smooth motion handling. Using the HDMI port to connect to my cable box, I watched Sunrise Earth on Discovery's HD Theater channel, which comes in at 1080i. The picture was sharp, with no apparent jaggies or artifacts, and colors were very bright without appearing oversaturated. There was some loss of detail in darker scenes, which can be attributed to the dark grayscale flaw. The integrated DVD player performed flawlessly, but on several occasions the monitor was unable to sync up when I switched back to PC mode, requiring a reboot.

The ViewSonic L2201w is not without its flaws, but given its affordable price, it's a good deal for a display that pulls double duty as a PC monitor and an HDTV/DVD player combo.

HP Flies Fast with Stylish Firebird PC

HP is introducing the "HP Firebird with VoodooDNA" 802 and 803 PCs, which will be featured at the CES 2009 show this week in Las Vegas.

Both Firebirds join the Voodoo omen and HP's Blackbird gaming PCs, as a more compact gaming PC for 2009. Both versions of the Firebird are style-forward, eschewing the blocky gaming tower of the past: the Firebird has a slimmer, floating design ID that evokes the Blackbird while keeping the slim theme. Like the Blackbird, the Firebird is easy to get into and service, though the slimmer chassis predictably has less expansion space.

The Firebird centers around a quad-core Intel Core 2 Quad processor (liquid cooled, naturally), dual Nvidia GeForce 9800S graphics cards in SLI configuration, and 4 Gbytes of DDR2 memory. The 802 comes with a Core 2 Quad Q9400 processor, 500GB (2 x 250-GB) hard drive capacity, and a slot-loading DVD burner. The 803 comes with a faster Q9550 processor, 640 GB (2 x 320GB) hard drive capacity, and Blu-ray player/DVD burner combo drive (also slot-loading). The Firebird's power supply is external, which saves space in the chassis, while giving the Firebird better power efficiency than other gaming desktops.

Both versions of the Firebird come with a wireless keyboard and mouse sets to keep the lines clean. The 804 also comes with 802.11 b/g/n wireless networking and Bluetooth, which can help reduce clutter even further. The Firebird's hard drives are 2.5-inch notebook class hard drives, saving space in the design-forward chassis. I see this system, which will start at $1,799, slotting in between the mainstream multimedia PCs from HP and the high end gaming PCs from HP and Voodoo.